Race against time
by drama-freak-csim
Summary: No one likes to be trapped alone in a big building with a killer. Especially when you think it's one of you're close co-workers.MS.
1. Something's wrong

A/N: This is set somewhere in season 2. Enjoy, and tell me what you think.

* * *

It had been a long, tiring day at the FBI building as Martin Fitzgerald walked down the hall in search of the coffee pot.

Martin lifted his hand to his head and winced in pain as his headache throbbed harder. He let out a moan as he turned the corner to quickly and bumped into someone.

As Martin looked down to see who had bumped into him, his frown quickly turned into a smile as he saw the beautiful Samantha Spade smiling up at him.

"Hey," Sam greeted and continued walking with Martin.

"Hey Sam," Martin smiled wearily.

"Long day huh," Sam said sympathetically.

Martin had hardly slept the night before and had come in especially early that morning to work on their latest case.

A nine-year-old girl had been kidnapped and the team had been racing around the clock to get her home safely. They found her eventually, but she was in bad condition. She was beat and raped.

Martin took it hard, finding her like that, half dead. And he tried to hide his emotions all day but it was no use, and now all he wanted was to go home and relax.

"Yep. And it's not over," Martin said miserably and turned to face Sam, "Paperwork, paperwork, and more paperwork"

Martin spun around to walk away but stopped when he felt a soft hand on his shoulder.

"Martin?" Sam asked softly. Martin turned to face Sam His eyes were gloomy and tired.

"Martin are you ok?" She asked in a concerned voice.

"Yeah," Martin breathed out, "I'm just tired"

Sam let out a sigh and lifted her hand to Martin's face, gently caressing his cheek with her thumb.

She leaned in and placed a soft, quick kiss on his lips.

"Aren't you scared someone'll see us?" Martin whispered.

"Practically everyone's gone home already," Sam whispered flirtatiously, as she ran her hands over Martin's chest. She leaned in closer so her lips hovered over his.

"Mmmmm," Martin groaned in pleasure, but then slowly pulled away.

"Paperwork," he reminded her and walked towards the coffee.

Sam sighed loudly and followed.

"Ok, I can wait," She pouted.

They reached the coffee pot to find Jack, Vivian and Danny crowding around it.

"What's going on?" Sam asked curiously.

"Someone's made a new batch of coffee. It's some weird mocha-chocolate mix and it's to die for," Danny said tantalizingly licking his lips.

"Here try some," Jack offered, handing Martin a full cup.

"Okay," Martin accepted.

"God this is good," Martin agreed after sipping his coffee.

"So who bought it?" asked Sam as she poured herself a cup.

"I dunno, it was already in the pot when I got here," Vivian filled in.

"Well, better get back to it," Danny said as he walked back to his desk, followed by Vivian.

"If anyone needs me I'll be in my office," Jack informed as he walked away.

Martin lifted his mug to take another sip but frowned when he saw the confused look on Sam's face.

"What's wrong?" Martin asked.

"I dunno, I just, I feel a little… weird," She replied rubbing her forehead.

"Are you ok?" Martin asked concerned.

"Yeah," Sam replied forcing a smile, "I guess I'm just a little tired too"

Before Martin could reply, they heard a crash from the Audio room.

They looked at each other in confusion and both ran towards the audio room.

As they entered, they were shocked to see Dave, the audio recordings expert, lying motionless on the floor.  
"Oh God," Martin yelled, rushing towards Dave. There was a smashed coffee mug on the floor which must have been knocked off the table.

"Is he ok?" Sam asked anxiously, supporting his head in her lap.

Martin checked for a pulse and breathed out a sigh of relief.

"He's alive. I think he might have just fainted," Martin told Sam, "Sam?"

Sam didn't reply. She was just staring blankly at Dave.

"Sam," He shouted, waving his hand in front of her.

"Huh?"

"We gotta get him to the couch"

Martin dragged Dave to the nearby couch and Sam just watched.

"Stay here, I'm gonna go tell Jack," Martin said getting up to leave but Sam stopped him.

"No, uh, I'm gonna come with you," Sam said shakily.

Martin looked at her confused.

"I uh," she stuttered nervously, "I've just got this really eerie feeling in the pit of my stomach that something bad is gonna happen" Martin knelt down to meet Sam's eyes with his.

"Sam, what's wrong? You're acting…not yourself," Martin asked softly. He grabbed her hands in his and squeezed them.

"Look it's nothing, I've just got this bad feeling ok?" Sam said defensively, pulling away from Martin.

"Ok," Martin answered clearly hurt. Martin followed Sam out the door, shooting her a quick glance. He was really worrying about her. She looked really freaked, and she was acting strange, and Martin couldn't figure out why.

Dave fainted, that's all. Sam had seen much, much worse before.

Sam, who was walking in front of Martin suddenly stopped dead in her tracks.

Wendy, the file clerk, was lying face down on the floor.

"What the hell is going on around her?" Sam asked, frantically checking for a pulse.

Martin knelt down and gently slapped Wendy's face, trying to waker her up.

"Martin, something really weird is going on, something wrong," Sam said shakily.

"Look we-" Martin started but was interrupted by a crash from the next room.

Martin got up first, pulled Sam up, and they both sprinted to the next room.

Vivian lay on the floor, a smashed lamp lying next to her.

"Viv," Danny shouted and knelt down beside her, "Vivian wake up"

"What's going on out here?" Jack bellowed as he stormed out his office.

"Viv she, she felt dizzy, and then she just fell," Danny said panicking.

Sam rushed to help but stopped halfway as everything started to spin.

"M-Martin," She murmured and started to wobble. She tried to focus her eyes but everything was a blur. She fell to the floor, hitting her head on the leg of the table.

"Samantha," Martin yelled as he saw the blonde blurry figure fall.

He could feel his head pounding hard and a burning pain in his chest. He started shaking, and tried to grab onto the table for support but missed and fell to the ground. He could hear voices yelling, but he couldn't make out the words, and all he could see was the office spinning out of control until… everything went black.


	2. Just pull back the cloth

Sam opened her heavy eyes and squinted at the bright light. She let out a moan and shielded her eyes until they adjusted to the light. She slowly sat up and looked around. Martin, Vivian and Danny were lying still on the floor, and Jack was slowly getting up and stretching.

"What happened?" He yawned, "Hey guys, wake up.

"I'm up, I'm up," Danny moaned as he rubbed his eyes and stretched.

Martin opened his eyes and blinked a few times before lifting himself up into a chair.

"Hey Viv, nap times over", Danny smirked, nudging Vivian who was swatting Danny's hand away.

"Sam, you're bleeding," Martin said worried as he noticed the blood on her head.

"I'm okay. I just bumped it on the table, that's all," Sam explained.

Martin moved closer to inspect Sam's head., it was only a small gash on her forehead but it looked deep and Martin was worried.

"I'll go get the first aid kit," said Martin, getting to his feet.

"No, honestly I'm fine," Sam protested, not wanting to make a big fuss over nothing.

Martin gave her an "_I'm getting the kit no matter what you say_" look and left.

"So what time is it?" Danny asked, running a hand through his hair.

Vivian looked at her watch and replied, "10:17 am"

"Whoa. Does anyone know what happened here," Danny asked everyone.

"Well," Jack said walking across the room, " I'm not rocket scientist, but I'm pretty sure the five of us fainted.

"Na-uh," Sam said shaking her head but wincing in pain, "Martin and I saw Dave and Wendy faint before you did Viv"

Martin returned with the first aid kit in his hand.

"Uh, I think the power's gone out," Martin informed, "None of the lights will turn on"

"No way, seriously?" Vivian asked.

Sam picked up a phone and brought it to her ear.

"Phone's are dead," She choked out, shivers running down her spine.

Danny ran to the elevators and pressed the button. Nothing happened. He pressed it again and again but nothing happened.

"Damn it," he yelled in frustration.

"Relax," Martin said calmly, tending to Sam's head," We can use the side stairs"

"Where'd you learn to be such a good nurse," Sam teased as Martin cleaned up her cut and covered it with a bandage.

"I'm full of surprises," Martin said cheekily.

"Thanks," Sam said getting up and giving Martin a sweet smile.

"So," Jack said," The power's out, the phones are dead, and someone's messing with the coffee"

"Want me to go check the power box?" Danny asked.

"Sure. But I don't want anyone to be alone right now. Take Sam with you. This guy might still be here," Jack informed.

"Sure. C'mon Sam," Danny called.

"Yep," she replied and the two walked out the door to the side stairs.

"There's gotta be a million camera's in this building, we should've got at least something on tape," Martin informed.

"You're right. Take Vivian and go up to the security room," Jack ordered.

Martin nodded and thought for a moment before asking, "Uh, what about you?"

"Excuse me"

"You said no one should be by themselves, what about you?" Martin repeated nervously.

"I think I'll be fine by myself but thanks for the concern," Jack replied and sat down at the table tidying papers.

Martin didn't move a muscle. He just stood staring at Jack with suspicious eyes. Jack felt eyes on him and looked up to see Martin staring at him.

"Is there anything else?" Jack asked gruffly.

"No, nothing" Martin said finally, and followed Vivian out the door.

"Why does this building have to have so many stairs?" Danny complained as he and Sam walked down another flight of stairs.

"Stop complaining, exercise is good for you," Sam teased.

"So what's up with you and Martin?" Danny asked cheekily.

"What? Danny I have no idea-"

"Sam you can quit pretending. I've seen the way you act around each other, the way you look at each other"

"Oh. Well then yeah, we're together"

"Ok, that's cool. I just can't believe you choose white collar boy over me"

Sam chuckled.

"I can't explain what I feel for Martin, it's… it's different than I've ever felt before"

"Does he make you happy"

"yeah"

"Then I'm happy for you. Cos you know all I want is for you to be happy"

"Thanks"

"And you should know, for when you get hitched, I throw great bachelor pa-"

"Wait!" Sam stopped walking.

"What?" Danny asked.

"Did you hear that?" Sam whispered, looking in all directions.

"Hear what?" Danny mock-whispered back.

"That noise. I think it came from up there," Sam whispered, pointing up the stairs.

"Sam it was nothing," Danny said reassuringly and continued walking.

"Do you have your gun on you?" Sam asked seriously.

"No. Relax would ya," Danny replied.

When they got to the first floor they went to the main entrance to get outside.

Danny pulled on the door but it was locked.

"Use your key," Sam whispered.

"Sam stop whispering," Danny ordered as he fished around in his pocket for the main entrance door key.

He inserted the key into the lock but it wouldn't turn. The door was scratched and damaged around the lock.

"Sam," Danny said letting out a shaky breath, "Someone's changed the lock. We can't get out"

"So Vivian," Martin said as they climbed up the stairs, "How long have you known Jack"

Vivian looked at him curiously.

"A while," she replied, "Why?"

"Oh, it's nothing," Martin replied. He opened the door and walked into the security room. There were no windows so the room was pretty dark. The monitors were off which was weird because they had back up electricity.

Andy, who was sitting in front of the monitors, had his head hunched over. Martin approached, lifted his head up, and saw that his throat had been slashed.

"Oh God," Martin whispered, raising his hand to his mouth.

Back on the 4th floor, Danny and Sam came running through the door.

"Jack, Jack someone changed the locks, we're trapped," Sam said panicking.

Seconds later Martin and Vivian came running.

"Jack Andy's throat was slashed," Vivian said shakily and out of breath.

Jack just stood, looking at the white board, which had been covered with a cloth earlier.

"What are yo-" Danny lost his voice as he saw what was on the board. Everyone was looking at the board, too shocked to speak.

There were pictures of Jack, Vivian, Danny, Sam and Martin stuck on the board. And beneath them was a timeline leading up to their day of disappearance.


	3. Trapped in the dark

A/N: Sorry for the wait, here's the next chapter. Hope ur having as much fun with these cliffhangers as I am. Don't forget to review.

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"Uh," Danny said softly, "If this is someone's idea of a joke, I would like to say now that I am not amused"

"Well unfortunately I think this is very serious," Jack replied.

"Look at this thing," Martin said in bewilderment, moving closer to the board, "2 days before disappearance, drinks drugged coffee, 2 hours before disappearance, makes shocking discovery, last seen Jack Malone's office 6 pm Thursday"

"T-that's tomorrow," Sam stuttered, slowly backing away from the board.

"Ok, look, we all have to stay calm and-"

"Calm? Jack we are trapped in a building with no power, no phones, and someone who plans on making us disappear," Martin yelled furiously.

"Hey you don't think I know how dangerous this is? How serious this is?" Jack barked back.

"Jack," Danny said stepping in with a slightly raised voice, "This guy knows what we've done, what we're doing, and what we're going to do next"

Martin gave Jack a threatening look before Vivian stepped in between them.

"Ok guys, we can't start attacking each other. We have to work together and outsmart this guy," she reasoned.

"Ok," Jack took in a deep breath, calmed himself down, and continued.

"Here's what's gonna happen. Viv, you and Danny search every inch of this building and round everyone up and bring them back here," Jack ordered.

"Ok," Vivian.

He turned to face Martin and Sam who still looked a bit freaked.

"I want you two to go up to the security room and checkout Andy," Jack instructed, "Oh and guys? I know we're not scheduled to disappear til tomorrow, but I think it would be safest if we all stayed outta my office. Don't forget your guns"

Martin tried to ignore the fact that Jack was once again left by himself to do whatever he was doing. He went to his desk to retrieve his gun and cuffs leaving Sam and Jack alone.

"Jack what are we gonna do with the body?" Sam asked as she nervously twisted her fingers.

"Well we're stuck with it for now and we have to preserve it. So I say we inspect it, see if the killer left anything, and keep outta there until we can get outta here," Jack answered.

Sam nodded.

"Uh," Jack said looking over at Martin to see if he was watching and lowered his voice, "Have, have you noticed anything weird going on with him?"

"No, why are you asking me?" Sam asked defensively and crossed her arms.

"You two just seem, close that's all. Just… be alert ok," Jack said walking away as Martin walked over.

"Here," Martin said, offering Sam her gun and cuffs while keeping his eyes on Jack.

Martin and Sam walked out of the room and up the stairs in silence.

"So wrong's wrong?" Sam asked, breaking the eerie silence.

"Huh?" Martin asked, snapping out of his daze.

"Well you've definitely got something on your mind, care to share?" She answered, following him up the stairs.

"It's just, the way Jack's been acting lately. Like he's up to something"

"What are you-, wait, are you saying you think Jack is behind this whole thing?

"Well it's just the way he's been-"

"Martin, are you crazy? Jack's our boss, he would never do anything like this"

"Oh C'mon Sam, he practically forced the coffee into my hands"

Flashback 

"Here try some," Jack said offering Martin a full mug

_End flashback._

"You're just being paranoid," Sam joked as she opened the door to the audio room, "Jack was just handing you a cup of coffee"

"Yeah, poisoned coffee," Martin replied. As they stepped into the audio room, they were shocked by what they saw.

As they looked around they room, they saw no mess, no body, nothing out of place.

"I thought you said Andy was up here," Sam said, trying to keep her voice at a steady level.

"He, he was," Martin mumbled. Martin walked around the room inspecting it. He searched the cupboards, the corners, everywhere. But the body was nowhere to be found.

"Um, Martin are you absolutely sure you saw the body here in the first place," Sam asked unsure.

"Yes, of course I did. He was sitting right there," Martin said, pointing to the now empty chair.

Sam let out a frustrated sigh and ran her fingers through her hair.

"We should get the surveillance tapes, watch them when the power gets back on and see what was the last thing he saw," Sam suggested, moving towards the desk.

"They're not here," Sam said checking the recorder, "We have to-"

Before Sam could finish her sentence, the door slammed shut and the whole room filled with darkness.

10 minutes later

Danny and Vivian returned to the fourth floor with 5 other people. Rick( a cop), Dave, Wendy, Susan(receptionist) and Jason( the cleaner).

"Did you see anyone else?" Jack asked, walking out of his office.

"No. Jack we searched every inch of this place and these were the only people in the building," Vivian answered, "and Jack that lock on the door was from inside. It's impossible for someone to escape and then lock it, or lock and then escape"

"You know what that means," Danny gulped, "The killer is somebody in this very room"


	4. I'm not going anywhere

A/N: Thanks for the great reviews, I know I promised I'd have this chapter sooner, but with school and everything I didn't have much time.

* * *

"CAN ANYONE HEAR US? HELLO? CAN ANYONE HEAR US?" Martin yelled as he slammed his fists on the door. 

"Give it up Martin, no one can hear us," Sam said sadly. Martin turned around and squinted in the dark.

"Over here," Sam said, shining a flashlight in Martin's eyes. Martin blindly made his way to where Sam was sitting on the floor and sat down next to her.

"Why the hell are there no windows in this room?" Sam asked furiously, burying her face in her hands.

"It's gonna be ok," Martin reassured, ignoring Sam's question.

"How? How is it gonna be ok?" Sam asked as she looked up at Martin with stinging eyes.

Martin put his arm around her and pulled her close.

"I'll protect you. Don't you ever forget that, no matter, I'll protect you," Martin whispered and kissed Sam's forehead.

"What kind of crazy person is doing all this?" she murmured.

Martin let out a deep sigh. "I don't know," he replied, "I really don't know."

"Okay," Danny said walking back towards Jack and Vivian, "Rick's in the other room now keeping the others under control."

"Thank God there was still a cop in the building," Jack said.

"So where are Samantha and Martin? Shouldn't they be back by now?" Vivian asked.

"They must still be with the body," Jack answered, drinking a cup of newly made coffee.

"So what now?" Danny asked clueless, slumping into a chair.

"We need to do a background checks on the five suspects," Jack informed, "We don't have computer power so we have to rely on the files we have."

"Ok, I'll go get them," Danny said as he stood and left.

Jack took Martin's seat next to Vivian and let out a tired sigh.

"Jack, how are we gonna get out of this? The elevators are out, the phones are out, the doors are locked, evenour cell phones won't work," Vivian complained.

"Well we could always jump out the window," Jack suggested half seriously.

"Ha, nice try but the windows are locked shut," Vivian replied, "This guy's thought of everything. I wouldn't be surprised if the reason no one showed up for work this morning is because this guy personally called every employee telling them it's a snow day or something."

"I know, it's crazy. What I want to know is how this guy did all this in such a short period of time. We were only asleep a couple of hours," Jack said in deep thought.

"Well all I know is I need to get home soon, if I don't see my Reggie soon, boy I'll"

"Wait a minute," Jack said realising something, "We fell asleep Tuesday night. And we immediately assumed that we woke up Wednesday morning. The thing I'm saying is, how sure can we be that it's Tuesday? I mean, no one could do all this in just one night."

"So what, you're saying it's Thursday?" Vivian asked in surprise.

"Only one way to find out," Jack replied as he searched Danny's draws for something.

"What are you looking for?" Vivian asked.

"Aha," Jack said as he found Danny's binoculars. He walked over to the window and looked through the binoculars.

"Jack I don't see what this has to do with what day it is," Vivian said as she peered over Jack's shoulder, looking for whatever Jack was looking for.

"I knew it," Jack said as he handed Vivian the binoculars," Take a look at that."

Vivian looked through the binoculars. "Jack I don't-"

"Just tell me what you see"

"Uh, a bird, some trees, a few cars-"

"Buildings Viv, buildings"

"Ok, the deli, the bank, post office, bookstore-"

"And what do you notice about the bookstore?"

"Nothing, it's closed"

"Exactly. The bookstore is closed. The bookstore is open Monday, Wednesday, Friday and the weekend, but it's not open…"

"Thursday," Vivian said shocked, "Today's Thursday. We're not disappearing tomorrow, we're disappearing today."

"What time is it?" Sam whispered. Martin tightened his arms around Sam and kissed her head.

"I'm not sure," He whispered back, "I left my watch at home"

The eerie silence that followed was broke by Martin's stomach rumbling.

"But my stomach tells me it's lunch time," He added.

"Is there any food in here?" Sam asked lifting her head off Martin's chest.

"I think I saw something in the cupboard over there" Martin said and grabbing Sam's hand, intertwined their fingers and pulled her up.

He held her close to him as he made his way around the room, shinning the flashlight everywhere.

He knew that there was no one else in the room, and that Sam wouldn't be in any danger if he simply let go of her hand, but he felt the need to protect her.

Not that Sam was complaining. She was grateful that Martin was there protecting her. And even if she wouldn't admit it, she didn't want to let go of Martin's hand. She wanted to hold onto him forever, and never let go.

Martin found the cupboard and opened it to find a big packet of bbq chips.

"Guess this will have to do," Martin said as he grabbed the bag and sat back down, pulling Sam with him.

They ate the chips in silence together until Sam finally spoke up.

"So you really think Jack has something to do with all this?" Sam asked quietly as she munched on a chip.

"I don't know what to think," He replied softly.

"Listen Sam, "Martin said, turning to face her, "There's some stuff I need to tell you before anything happens to us."

"No, Martin don't say that, nothing is going to-"

"But if something does happen"

"Martin, please, don't talk like this"

"Sam, we might not have much time left"

"We can catch this guy"

"How? How Sam?"

Sam looked away trying to fight back the tears. Martin lifted his hand to her face and gently turned it so she was facing him. As he did this, he felt a wet tear fall into his hand.

"I'm not going anywhere," she whispered, "and neither are you"

Martin leant down to place a soft, loving kiss on her lips and held her in a tight hug. He wanted to tell her how he felt, but he didn't want to make her upset.

They had only been dating a month or two now, but he knew he was in love. And he wanted Sam to know that too, before it was too late.

"That's it, I'm going to look for Sam and Martin," Danny said, storming off with frustration mixed with worry.

"I'll come too," Jack called, "Viv keep an eye on things here."

Danny ran up the stairs and Jack followed behind. They kicked down the door and found Martin and Sam, huddled together in darkness.

"What took you guys so long?" Martin asked squinting at the light.

"Are you guys ok?" Danny asked rushing towards them.

"What happened?" Jack asked helping Sam up.

"Some one locked us in," Sam answered, brushing dust off her pants.

"So where's the body?" Danny asked, pulling Martin to his feet.

"Not here" he answered.

"Lets just get outta here before that door shuts again," Jack suggested, leaving.

As they walked down the stairs, Danny and Jack filed Martin and Sam in on what they knew.

"So it's someone who works here?" Sam asked in surprise.

"And it's Thursday?" Martin asked equally surprised.

"Yep and yep," Danny said glancing at his watch and letting out a sigh, "4 hours to go"

"So what do we-"

ARRRRRRGH

Jack was interrupted by a thrilling shriek.


	5. Tick tock goes the clock

Jack, Danny, Martin and Sam ran to the source of the scream. It was on the 4th floor in the ladies bathroom. Jack pushed open the door to find Susan shaking and breathing hard.

Sam looked up at the mirrors and saw what had freaked Susan out. There was writing in blood across the mirror.

"Tick tock goes the clock," Sam read out,

"You're running out of time,

Better stop me if you can,

Cos soon your lives are mine."

"This guy is sick," Martin said in disgust.

Danny helped Susan up and walked her over to the rest of the group.

"Jack," Vivian said walking in, " I was just talking to Rick. He said half an hour ago Jason, the cleaner, went to the men's room. After 5 minutes Rick went looking for him, but couldn't find him. About 10 minutes later Rick found him in the break room drinking coffee."

"That doesn't sound right. How long has Jason been working here?" Jack asked.

"Not sure. You want me to go through his file?" Vivian asked.

"Yeah, go do that," Jack said and Vivian walked out the bathroom.

Jack turned to the rest of his team.

"Martin, Sam," Jack said, "I want you two to go through Wendy, Susan and Dave's files, see if anything interesting pops up."

Sam felt a warm feeling wash over her at the fact of knowing Martin would be with her. Even though she was a very independent woman, she felt safe and secure with him, not to mention she could flirt while doing her work.

"Danny," Jack continued, "You and me are gonna go interrogate this Jason guy"

"Ok," Danny replied and followed Jack.

Martin walked over to Danny's desk where he had left the files.

Sam sat down in her swirly chair and Martin pulled her over to his desk. She let out a quick chuckle as her chair bumped into his.

"Ok," Martin said letting out a sigh," I'll start with Wendy, you can do Dave."

Sam let out a little grunt as Martin grabbed Wendy's file and he looked at her confused.

"What?" he asked innocently.

"Nothing, I'm just not surprised you decided to do her first," Sam said pointing to Wendy's file.

Martin opened his file chuckling.

"Don't tell me you're actually jealous of Wendy," Martin said smiling.

Sam looked around to make sure no one could hear them.

"Well she's a tall, brunette, beautiful girl, and the way you ran to her side when she fell, I'm just saying I wouldn't be surprised if-"

Martin put a stop to Sam's rambling by placing a sweet, loving kiss on her lips. It only lasted a second or two, then Martin pulled away smiling cheekily and said, "You're cute when you're jealous."

Sam playfully nudged him in the stomach and went back to reading Dave's file.

"Oh, call the paramedics," Martin joked as he gripped his stomach in fake agony.

Sam tried to restrain her laughter by covering her mouth and went back to work. Martin watched her, thinking about how much he loved her laugh, her smile, everything about her.

"Jack," Vivian called as she caught up with Jack who was on his way with Danny to the interrogation room.

They both stopped so Vivian could catch up. "Hey Viv, what did you find?" Jack asked as Vivian approached them.

"I looked through Jason Ridge's file. Jack, about 1 and a half years ago he was accused for the murder of his wife Claire and 6-year-old girl Abbey," Vivian answered.

"What?" Danny asked in surprised and crossed his arms.

"He was found not guilty because of tampered evidence," Vivian added.

"How much do you wanna bet that we got our guy? Ok, Rick's in the interrogation room with Jason, shall we?" Jack said as he gestured Danny to walk in.

Vivian went to the room behind the two-way mirror and watched intensely.

"So, Jack said as he took a seat next to Danny, across from Jason, "Jason Ridge? Right?"

"Yes," he replied nervously.

"How long have you been working here Jason?" Jack asked.

"Um, about a 3 or 4 months now," Jason replied after clearing his throat.

"So tell me about yourself Jason"

"W-what do you want to know"

"Oh I don't know, your favourite colour, TV show, the last words your wife uttered before you strangled her"

"Hey, I didn't lay a hand on my wife," Jason snapped defensively.

"Looks like you have a bit of a temper Jason," Danny piped in.

"Well when someone kills the 2 people you love more than anything in the world and frames you for it, let me know how you feel"

"So you're sticking with the same story as last time," Danny said leaning back in his chair.

"Look, why are you bringing all this stuff up now?" Jason asked impatiently.

"We have a very serious problem on our hands Mr. Ridge," Jack informed, "Someone in this building seems to find it amusing to brutally murder our employees."

"So you think I had something to do with it?" Jason asked quietly, looking down at the ground.

"Well who else would do it?" Jack asked harshly.

Jason looked up, his eyes glazed with tears. Jack's expression softened a bit, and he sat down, waiting for Jason to speak.

"I don't care what you think, I don't care what anyone thinks, I did not kill them," Jason replied shakily, "Do you know what it's like to wake up alone, to wake up and realise you've got nothing left to live for, to wake up and realise that no matter how hard you pray or how hard you wish, they're never coming back"

Danny let out a shaky breath and sat defensively.

"And one of the worst parts," Jason continued, "Is knowing that the person who robbed you of your beautiful wife and angel daughter is still out there"

"Jack this can't possibly be our guy," Danny said as he walked over to his desk.

"He could just be a great liar," Jack suggested.

"Oh c'mon Jack, have a heart. That guy in there is innocent," Danny said.

"Hey guys," Sam, greeted as she and Martin walked towards them. Martin leant against the table with his arms crossed while Sam sat on Danny's desk.

"Did you find anything?" Jack asked.

"Zilch. I think we got our guy," Martin answered.

Danny opened his mouth to object but was stopped by a strange noise.

Sam looked around confused and asked, "What is that?"

"It sounds like something's rebooting," Martin answered and walked towards the elevator, followed by Jack, Sam and Danny.

"What's going on?" Vivian asked as she came from around the corner.

"It looks like the elevators moving," Sam as the numbers above the elevator doors lit up.

"1st floor, 2nd floor, 3rd floor," Danny said as the numbers lit up.

The 4th floor button lit up and everyone jumped at the ding of the elevator stopping.

Everyone pulled out their guns and aimed them at the door.

Sam's breathing became quicker as she w3aited for what seemed like forever for the doors to open.

The elevator doors opened slowly and Jack covered his mouth in shock at the sight he saw.

Sam took in a deep breath and quivered at the chill that ran down her spine.

Martin tried to steady his hands but they wouldn't stop shaking.

Danny stood still for a minute, until realisation hit him and he could feel the hairs on the back of his neck tingle.

These agents had seen a lot over the years, but NONE of them expected to see what they were now staring at.


	6. Martin was different

A/N: Thanks for the feedback, I appreciate the tips. Oh and about the crazy ideas, in the crazy world called my brain horses fly, pig's neigh, and crims work in FBI buildings.

It's a bit long, but once I started I couldn't stop.

* * *

"I- is that who I think it is?" Vivian stuttered.

"Yeah it is," Jack replied, "Well at least we found Andy's body."

"Yeah Jack, but now we have two bodies on our hands," Sam said solemnly.

They all inched closer to the two bodies lying on the floor of the elevator.

The body next to Andy had been stripped down to his shorts, with his head bashed in.

Danny let out a sigh. "Officer Eric Duts, he was a great guy," Danny murmured crossing his arms over his body.

"What was Eric doing here anyway- and why is he down to his underwear?" Sam asked in confusion.

"He was in the elevator so he must have been stripped and killed before the power failure," Jack observed.

"Phones and lights are still out but the elevators are back on," Vivian said after checking the phone at her desk.

"Wait," Martin said in shock, piecing things together in his head, "Please tell me someone has seen that Rick guy somewhere before today"

Everyone shook their heads except Sam.

"Sam?" Jack asked.

Sam bit her bottom lip in deep concentration and replied, "When Danny and Vivian brought him up here I could have sworn I'd seen him somewhere before but I, I can't put my finger on it"

"Where _is_ Rick?" Danny asked, followed by an eerie silence. The floor looked empty except for them. It was quiet and tranquil.

"Hey it's 4:00 pm," Martin said out loud, reading his watch, "2 hours before our disappearance we were suppose to find out something shocking, I'm guessing this is it."

"Everything's going as the killer planned," Vivian said in a worried voice, crossing her arms tightly to feel safer.

"We can outsmart this guy, we just need to keep our cool and focus," Jack said calmly, "Now nobody and I mean nobody, is to be by themselves, so we'll team up. Martin, Danny, Samantha, you three search this building again, for Rick and the others. Viv, you and I will stay here; see what we can find out about Rick"

"We're on it," Danny replied, and headed off with Martin and Sam on his tail.

* * *

"So should we start with the first floor and work our way up?" Danny asked Martin as they reached the stairs.

"Yeah, sure," Martin replied rubbing his chin.

Sam remained quiet, slowly making her way down, with her hand constantly hovering over her gun.

"Sam, are you alright?" Martin asked with concern. Sam turned around to face Martin who was standing behind her.

"I just want to get out of here," Sam muttered sadly. Her hazel eyes were deep with fear and misery and it broke Martin's heart to see her so upset.

Martin moved closer to comfort her but stopped and looked over Sam's shoulder to see Danny looking at them.

Martin looked from Sam to Danny, and then back at Sam.

"I told Danny about us," Sam said barely above a whisper.

"Yeah and I'm really happy for you two, but I gotta say I've known for like ages now. You two outta be more discreet if you wanna fool Jack," Danny said butting in.

Martin enveloped Sam in a big hug and she let out a deep sigh.

"Better?" Martin asked.

"Much," She whispered back, and pulled away. Danny smirked and continued down to the first floor, with martin and Sam close behind.

* * *

"This is useless Jack," Vivian complained in frustration, slamming another file close on her desk, "We have nothing, not even a full name."

"How much longer do we have?" Jack asked, inspecting the white board.

Vivian looked at her watch and grumbled.

"1 hour, 35 minutes to go"

Jack sat down again and rubbed his tired eyes.

"Ok, let's profile this guy"

"His kills are violent, hands on, personal?"

"Nah, I think Andy and Eric were just in the wrong place at the wrong time. This guy seems to be focusing on us"

"So what, he kills for kicks?"

"This guy had the chance to murder us when we fell unconscious. I don't think it's just about killing us; it's more than that. He's playing with us, making us suffer; he's got a grudge against us"

"So it's someone we've crossed paths with? I haven't seen him before"

"Sam has though, that's what she said before, and maybe Sam's his real target"

Vivian scratched her nose, thinking.

"A lot of guys would have a grudge against the FBI, but this is specifically Sam," She said.

"She's put away too many crims to count. It'd take days to go through them all," Jack said standing up and walking to the window to think.

"We don't have days jack, we have just over an hour," Vivian said in annoyance.

"Well I guess we'll just have to wait," Jack answered in a weary voice.

"Wait?" Vivian asked bewildered.

"It's one guy against five FBI agents, how could we lose?"

* * *

_**15 minutes later**_

"Now I don't wanna whinge, but it's getting really dark down here," Danny complained as he shone his flashlight around the 3rd floor.

"We know Danny," Martin answered as he searched.

"And I don't wanna freak you guys out or anything but it'd be quite easy for someone to simply grab from behind and slit-"

"Danny, we could use some positivity here," Martin answered, shining his flashlight into Danny's eyes.

"Oh I know. I'm just saying I wouldn't be surprised if-"

"DANNY!" Sam growled, giving him a threatening look.

"Ok, ok I'll shut up," Danny said, raising his hands in surrender.

"Smartest move you've made all night," Martin said cheekily, checking out and empty closet as he spoke.

"Hey just cos you two are sleeping together does not mean that you can gang up on me," Danny complained, following Sam and Martin into an empty office. Sam smiled playfully at Danny and Martin chuckled.

"Clear," Sam said as she cleared the room.

"We've checked every room, no Rick, no Jason, no Susan, no Andy, no Wendy, nothing," Danny said in annoyance.

"What about security upstairs?" Martin asked.

"Doors closed, if anybody is in there their not getting out anytime soon."

Sam let out a deep breath and ran her fingers through her hair. It used to be up in a neat plait but with everything that was happening it was just neater to let it down.

Martin let out a sigh and put his gun back in its holster.

"Let's get back to Jack," Martin said turning around, "No one's here"

Danny took the lead and Martin and Sam followed him.

"Hey," Martin whispered as he stopped walking and gently grabbed Sam's forearm, "Are you ok?"

Sam looked into Martin's soft caring eyes and her heart just melted. Martin treated her so right. He was always caring for her and worrying about her. But not in the annoying way, in a sweet loving way that made Sam wonder why she had waited so long to be with him. Loving him made her feel…- wait. Sam shook her head at the thought and Martin looked at her curiously.

Sam looked at the ground to avoid his eyes and let her thought's register.

She couldn't be in love, could she? No. Love wasn't for her, Samantha spade did not fall in love. Ok, so maybe she did once or twice in the past, but having her heart broken was not an experience she wanted to relive.

Sam gave Martin a reassuring smile and lightly kissed his cheek.

"I'm fine," She replied before receiving a comforting smile from Martin.

"C'mon you two keep up," Danny yelled back and Martin and Sam jogged to catch up with him. As they walked with Danny, Martin rested his hand on Sam's back, causing her to return to her previous thoughts.

She was amazed that such a simple gesture could make her feel so good, so alive.

She always felt that way around Martin, she always felt her blood run fast and her heart skip a beat.

So what if she was falling in love with Martin. He would never treat her like she was his slave, or run and break her heart.

Martin was different, and she loved that about him.

* * *

When they got back to the 4th floor it was almost pitch black, except for the 5 beams of light from the flashlights. Danny sat down with Viv and Jack at the table and Sam sat at her desk (or it could have been someone else's. Considering the dark she couldn't really tell whose it was, but it was a desk that she could sit on so it didn't really matter).

Martin shone his flashlight around to see if everything was normal. Nothing was out of the ordinary, except... wait. Did he just see that? Martin stepped closer to Jack's office to see if his eyes were playing tricks on him. Nope, they weren't. He stepped into Jack's office and saw the surveillance videos stacked in Jack's bin.

Sam noticed Martin wasn't around and squinted around for him, surprised when she found him in Jack's office.

"Martin?"

"Get out, quick"

"Martin watch out!"


	7. Blondie

"Martin," Sam called.

"Get out, you're not suppose to be in there," Jack yelled.

"Martin watch out," Sam called in fear as she saw a dark figure make its way across Jack's office.

"What the hell is going on here Jack? These are the surveillance-" Martin stopped mid-sentence.

He shakily swallowed as he felt the barrel of a gun push hard into his back.

Martin just stood there, not moving an inch, just staring blankly at Sam.

The other agents could tell by Martin's pale, stone cold face that something was wrong. Jack, Vivian, Danny and Sam pulled out their guns and aimed it towards Martin's direction.

"Nice and slow," Someone whispered into Martin's ear from behind, "Back up into the office and close the door"

Martin gave Jack a cold hard glare, which didn't go unnoticed by the rest of the team, slowly stepped back, and shut the door. It was just about pitch black so even though the doors were glass, they couldn't see what was going on inside.

"Martin," Danny called and stepped forward, only to be stopped by Jack.

"Don't, it's too dangerous," Jack warned holding Danny back.

"Excuse me?" Vivian said surprised, "Jack call me crazy but you're looking very involved right about now"

Danny looked mat Jack expectantly.

Jack opened his mouth to speak but didn't know what to say.

"Your involved in this?" Sam asked as anger flashed in her eyes and she inched closer.

"Sam let me explain-"

"Oh, ok. So let me get this straight. You planned the whole lights out no escape, scared us to death, and took Martin as a hostage. So what jack? You wanted Martin's life to be at risk?"

"Would you please just listen-"

"No Jack I will not listen," Sam said as she stepped up close to Jack, searching his eyes for any answers.

"Start explaining," Danny ordered as he, Vivian and Sam surrounded Jack.

Just as Jack was about to talk, his office door slammed open.

All agents raised their guns and aimed at the door.

Everything was quiet; all that could be heard were the quick, short breaths coming mainly from Sam.

Seconds passed and nothing happened. No one moved, no one spoke.

Jack took a deep breath and cleared his throat.

"Rick," He called.

Rick slowly stepped into the doorway clutched to Martin, who was gagged with a gun pointed to his head.

"Put down your guns," Rick ordered steadily. No one budged.

"Put down your guns, now. Or Marty here gets it," Rick ordered, looking specifically at Sam.

Sam felt a chill run down her spine. Only Martin's relatives knew to call him Marty, and Sam of course.

"Maybe I'm not making myself clear. Put down your weapons, NOW!" Rick said raising his voice and tightening the grip on his gun.

Sam didn't know what to do, she knew that in the end they would outnumber him, but she couldn't stand risking Martin's life. She looked over to him for guidance. Her eyes were staring straight into her soul, ordering her, begging her not to stand down. Martin ever so slightly shook his head.

Sam looked at Martin, then at Rick. Ethically, the worst thing to do in this type of situation is to back down and give away the power she held, but with that gun so close to Martin's head, with the hand so tight, with Rick's steady fearless eyes, she just couldn't do it.

She took in a deep breath and threw her gun down, sliding across the floor. The sound caused Jack, Danny and Vivian to turn, startled, which gave Rick the opportunity to jump n Sam and tackle her to the ground.

"Hey!" Jack screamed as Rick and Sam hit the ground and he aimed at Rick.

"Do not move," Danny threatened, inching closer.

"Uh uh," Rick warned, as he slowly got up, gripping on to Sam who was struggling to free herself from Rick's grasp, "I wouldn't do that if I were you pretty boy"

Danny didn't back down. Rick turned to look at jack. "Don't forget our little deal Jack. If anything happens to me…"

Jack fell silent, contemplating what to do.

"Alright," he agreed, putting his gun away, "Let's go guys"

"Oh you have got to be kidding me,'' Danny said looking at Jack.

''Jack you-''

''I said let's go," Jack demanded as he stormed into his office, followed reluctantly by Danny and Vivian.

"Now the fun's really gonna start," Rick whispered in Sam's ear before dragging her to the others. Once in the office, Rick shut the door and locked it. He pulled out a little device from his pocket and pressed a small yellow button. All of a sudden the light's flickered back on and the room was filled with brightness. Sam wriggled free from Rick and crawled over to where Martin was sitting on the floor. She pulled the cloth down off his mouth and cupped his face in her hands. Martin's breath was short and quick.

"Are you ok?" She asked whispered almost in tears. Martin nodded his head.

"Hey Blondie? Did I say you could socialise? No. Now get over there," Rick ordered, pointing to a corner.

Sam felt goose bumps form al over her skin as she crawled to her corner, it was that name, Blondie, it was familiar to her for some reason.

Rick pulled out 5 pairs off handcuffs from his back pocket. He walked over to Jack and handcuffed him to his desk leg without resistance.

He then cuffed and tied a confused looking Danny to a chair, and then a betrayed looking Vivian to the doorknob. He handcuffed Martin to the other leg of Jack's desk and finished by cuffing Samantha to the filling cabinet.

''Ok," he said satisfied, "Now that I'm certain you can't escape, I think it's toime we got to know each other a little better"

"What are you talking about," Danny spat.

"Danny Taylor," Rick said smugly, "Let's start with you. Abusive, good for nothing father. Junkie, worthless brother. That must have been one hell of a screwed up family. I can't imagine how many times they had to rush you to the hospital. What'd they tell them, you fell down the stairs? And that little drinking problem of yours? I see you're a chip off the old block."

"You know nothing bout me or my family you hear?" Danny yelled, struggling to get out of the chair.

"Rick what do you really think you're going to accomplish by doing this?" Jack asked almost calmly.

"Jack Malone, the famous Jack Malone. Tell me Jack, how's the wife?" Rick asked with an evil smile, "And those two beautiful girls? Better watch out Jack, beauty's a dangerous thing."

"Look I'll give you anything," Jack pleaded, causing everyone to look at him.

"Ok Jack, just what is going on?" Martin asked, fed up with all the secrets.

"Oh, Jack didn't tell you," Rick asked mysteriously, "Well go ahead Jack, it's an open circle. Tell them how you helped me"

"What?" Sam asked in shock. All eyes turned to Jack.

"I had to ok. He- he's taken Maria and the girls. If I did what he said he wouldn't hurt them," Jack tried explaining. He turned to face Vivian, Who felt the most betrayed.

"I'm sorry Viv"

"You should have told me Jack. I thought I knew you better than to keep it to yourself"

"Well what would you have done if it were your husband, your kid?"

"I would have told you, I would have trusted you"

"Well I'm sorry ok"

"Too late to start worrying now"

"Now call me crazy," Rick said butting in, "But I'd say there's some unresolved tension between the two of you"

Rick tapped his finger in his chin as if thinking hardly.

"Now what could it be?" he asked, "Well lets start with the basic's. Vivian Johnson. Kid Reggie, husband Richard. Oh yes, now I remember, you got promoted didn't you. But then Jack swooped in and took it all away, right?"

"I have nothing to say to you, jerk"

"Oh don't be like that. After all, I know all you're little secrets"

"I don't have any secrets"

"Oh no? Vivian you were rushed to hospital when you were 17 right? Now what was that for again, oh yes, you overdosed"

Vivian stayed quiet.

"We all thought that was in the past, didn't we Vivian. But then I recently received some very compelling evidence"

"Shut up, you don't know what you're talking about"

"Got quiet a temper there. I believe there's a drug, can't quiet remember the name, that could help you with that little problem"

Vivian looked away, too ashamed to look at her team.

"Who's next?" Rick asked looking around the room,

"Ah, Martin Fitzgerald," Rick declared as he choose his next victim, "Or do you prefer Marty?"

Martin breathed calmly and looked Rick straight in the eye. He wasn't gonna be intimidated by this guy.

"How's your father Marty?'

He didn't reply.

"Wait, why am I asking you? You wouldn't have a clue how he is, you hardly see him. But then again, who wants to see someone who treated you so bad. Tell me, what's it like to know no one loves you? No one cares about you?"

Martin felt his blood rise, but didn't reply.

"Sorry, scratch that last thought. Someone did care for you, even loved you. Dear Aunt Bonnie"

Sam felt her heart stop and a shiver run down her spine. Martin would lash out any minute now, either that or burst out crying.

Martin looked down at the ground.

"Ah, cancer's a bitch ain't it? I should know, someone I loved died from cancer too. Stupid doctors couldn't cure a simple lump, a simple stupid little lump"

"Tell us about your father Rick," Jack asked, trying to find out more about him.

"Ha, nice try Jack, but I'm not done. I've still got one, person, left," He said as he stared directly at Sam.

Sam swallowed fearfully as she felt a knot in her stomach and a lump in her throat. Samantha Spade had done many things, kept many secrets.

"Blondie, I'm surprised you don't recognise me. Actually I'm glad you didn't recognise me. Didn't spend 3 grand on fairy dust did I?"

"I don't know what you're talking about"

"I knew that if you remembered me, I'd be in some serious trouble. I mean it's not anything too sinister, I didn't kill you're mother or anything. But like everyone, I have my secrets."

Everyone listened intently, waiting for what was next.

"I knew I had to make you forget what happened. You'd be surprised the things you can buy off the Internet. Only took a couple minutes before I found the drug I was looking for. The perfect, memory-loss drug"


	8. But we're having so much fun

The room suddenly fell quiet; all that could be heard were the shaky breaths being drawn in and out. Everyone had opened his or her mouths to say something at one point but found nothing to say.

What could you say in a situation like this?

Rick had just dived into their personal lives and revealed well-hidden secrets.

Rick decided to break the silence by saying, "I love the way I can make a whole room go dead silent"

"Uh- wait," Sam said confused, "I uh, I… what, happened? What did you do?"

Rick smiled one of his evil smiles and lowered his voice to a whisper.

"You'll never remember"

"This has got to stop now," Martin ordered, scared for Sam's safety.

"But we're having so much fun, aren't we?" Rick asked kneeling down to Sam and smelling the sweet scent of her hair.

"Hey!" Martin yelled, while trying to move but failing on account of Jack holding his arm back, "Don't touch her!"

Sam looked at Martin with pleading eyes, begging him not to cause trouble.

Rick got up and started laughing hysterically.

"Do I detect some feelings, agent Fitzgerald?" Rick said slyly, reaching into his back pocket for a revolver, "Cos I'm sorry man, but she's all mine."

"Martin, please, just calm down", Sam pleaded with worried eyes.

Jack let go of Martin's arm as he felt his body relax.

Wait- feelings?

Jack looked at Martin then at Sam and suddenly it all clicked in his head what was really going on. He knew something had changed, but he was too busy with his personal life to notice. Sam seemed happier lately, brighter, and she had some sort of glow about her.

And Martin, well something had definitely changed about him. Always smiling around her, looking out for Sam, and being over protective. It finally occurred to Jack that Samantha and Martin Fitzgerald were having a relationship. But what was wrong with that? Martin made Sam happy, and that was all that mattered right?

But Jack couldn't help but feel a stinging pain through his chest as the thought of her and Martin flooded into his head. Jack shook the images out of his mind and tried to focus on the situation at hand.

"When the hell are you gonna let us go," Danny yelled impatiently, stealing Rick's attention away from Martin, "Cause I'm getting pretty pissed off. We have lives to get back to you know."

Rick walked towards Danny with an angry look across his face.

"Do not piss me off," Rick warned as he slammed the back of his gun into Danny's head and walked over to Jack's desk, sitting in his chair as if he were king of the world.

"Danny," Sam shrieked covering her mouth.

"Danny, you ok?" Martin asked from the other side of the room.

Danny wearily lifted his head and looked up at the ceiling, blinking a couple of times.

"Danny, you're bleeding," Vivian noted as a small drip of blood slowly ran down his face.

"Are you ok?" Sam asked fretting.

"Fine," Danny mumbled, " Just a little bump on the head."

"Do you have concussion?" Jack asked.

"Nah," Danny mumbled, "I'll be fine guys"

"I would advise the rest of you," Rick announced, "To keep your mouths shut unless told otherwise."

Rick looked at his watch and frowned, getting up from the chair.

"What?" Vivian asked nosily, "Late for a tea party?"

Rick grunted. "We're running a little behind schedule but no worries, I'll just have to speed things up a little."

"What _things _exactly?" Martin asked suspiciously.

Rick ignored his question and turned his attention to Sam.

"Ya know Blondie," he said, "There's a lot about your life that you don't know, a lot of buried secrets. I'm not an evil person Sammie, I don't kill for the fun of it, but I won't let anything stand in my way, I'm not stopping until I get what I want."

"Why can't you just tell me what you're talking about?" Sam asked frustrated.

Rick's smile turned into an evil grin and his eyes sparkled with mystery.

"Trust me, once you find out, you'll regret ever wanting to know."

"Are my family alright?" Jack butted in, not able to wait any longer.

"They will be," Rick replied, "As soon as I get out of here you'll have them back."

"Let me talk to them"

"No"

"Please Rick, please let me talk to them"

"… Fine, two minutes"

Rick pulled out his cell phone and dialled a number.

"Ok," he spoke into the phone, "Put em on"

He handed the phone to Jack, "Don't forget, two minutes"

"Hello?"

"Jack?"

"Maria, thank God, are you ok, are the girls ok?"

"Jack where are you? Why isn't anyone coming to for us?"

"I need to know that you're ok. Are any of you hurt?"

"No… no we're ok considering"

"Put Hannah on for a sec"

"No, Jack"

"Well then how about Kate?"

"I don't want you talking to them"

"What?"

"Jack…"

"You don't want me to talk to my own daughters?"

Rick snatched the phone from Jack's grasp and hung up.

"Hey!" Jack yelled angrily.

"Sorry," Rick replied sounding anything but remorseful, "Times up"

Rick looked down at his watch and scanned the room for a moment.

"I've got business to take care of downstairs, don't try anything stupid," Rick said as he walked towards the door, nudged Vivian out the way, and walked out, shutting the door behind him.

As soon as the door slammed shut Jack lifted up the desk leg and slid his cuff off, freeing him self.

"Well that was easy," Vivian said observing, "Maybe he's not as smart as we think."

"No. This guys tricky. He knew that Martin and I could easily escape, I mean it's not like the legs are glued to the floor," Jack answered as he and Martin got up, "He wanted us to be able to escape"

"To run after him?" Sam asked looking from Jack to Martin. Martin thought a minute. "Maybe he's waiting for us in the next room, maybe he wants to split us up, maybe he-"

"Oh I'm sorry to interrupt guys," Danny said sarcastically, "I know you guys are really happy that you've escaped and everything but do you think you could, oh I dunno, maybe untie me!"

Jack held back a smile as he went to undo the ropes around Danny, and Martin went over to Sam to see if she could escape.

"How are you holding up?" Martin asked softly as he inspected the filling cabinet and handcuffs.

"I've been better," Sam answered in a whisper.

"It's no use Martin, I'm stuck" Sam whined as Martin pulled and tugged.

Martin brought a hand up to her cheek and looked deep into her eyes. She gave him a sad frown and looked back down at the ground.

Jack cleared his throat to get their attention.

"It seems Samantha and Vivian aren't going anywhere anytime soon,"

"So what? We just leave them here?" Danny asked.

"Or we just all stay here," Martin suggested, getting up off the ground.

"We can't," Jack disagreed, "We have to get this guy"

"Does anyone else think it's weird that only the ladies can't escape?" Danny asked.

"What are you implying," Vivian asked defensively.

"Oh, no not like that," Danny said raising his hands in defence, "I just meant that it's specifically the women who are stuck. Maybe that's what gets this guy off, maybe he has a thing about chaining up girls and-"

"Ok, ok," Martin stopped him, "We get the picture, but… what if I stay here and-"

The door slamming opening into Vivian interrupted Martin.

"Owww," Vivian groaned.

"You ok Viv?" Sam asked.

"Yeah fine," she replied rubbing her back.

Rick stepped through the door with a gun moving to and fro from Jack, Danny and Martin.

The three agents reached for their guns and aimed for Rick.

Faint sirens could be heard in the background. Sam let out a sigh of relief, as she knew they were about to be saved.

"I guess the cops are coming," Rick said calmly. He didn't seem worried or scared, not even one bit nervous.

"Gotta run," Rick said turning for the door.

"Freeze," Jack ordered, aimed for Rick's shoulder and squeezed the trigger.

Time seemed to stop for a split second. Jack blinked, and blinked again. He couldn't believe his eyes. No blood, no gunshot wound, no bang, nothing. Rick turned around and smiled.

"You think I'm stupid enough to just leave your loaded guns on your sleeping bodies so you can wake up and shoot me? You might want to check that it'sgot bulletsnext time. Goodbye Blondie, oh and don't worry, I will be back" and with that he turned around and shot.

BANG. Blood started pouring on the floor.

"Oh God"

Thump.

"Argh my arm"

"Hold on, cops are almost hear"

"Your losing way to much blood"

"Don't you dare close your eyes, stay awake, you hear me!"

* * *

A/N: ok ok I know what you're thinking, hasn't this girl ever heard of a happy ending? Well this is way to fun. So i guess it's pretty obvious that someone got shot, only question is who? I'm really interested in what you guys think so tell me who YOU think got shot, and for those who get it right, I promise I'll mention you in my authors notes:) Don't forget to review.


	9. She will be loved

Sam let out a tired sigh and looked down at her watch.

"Damn it," She cursed frustrated, "Why is it taking so long?"

Danny, who was sitting next to Sam in the waiting room, took her hand and squeezed it supportingly.

"Martin's gonna be fine," Danny said softly.

Sam dropped her head in her hands and rubbed her red eyes. Her face was tear streaked and she looked like a mess.

In a way, Sam was glad that Jack and Vivian had gone off in search of Rick and had not stayed at the hospital. She didn't want anyone to see her like this, least of all Jack.

"Gunshot wound to the shoulder," Sam muttered, "Why haven't they told us anything yet?"

"Martin's strong, he'll pull through," Danny said trying to sound reassuring, even though he himself was worried. As Sam got up to stretch her legs, she looked around the waiting room, absorbing her surroundings.

It was a clean hospital, but gloomy. The walls were plain white with no decorations or wall hangings. There were hardly any people there that Sam could see, giving the hospital a deserted feeling.

The only thing that livened the place up was the radio being played over the loud speaker. Sam looked down at her watch, groaned, and turned around to face Danny.

"Why is he still in intensive care? And why isn't anyone telling us what's going on?" Sam asked angrily.

"Please Sam, try to calm down. It'll be-"

"How do you know it'll be ok Danny? What if, what if he's dead, and, and they just don't care about telling us or"

"Sam. Take a deep breath ok?"

Sam stopped her rambling and looked intently at Danny. He was only trying to help her, only trying to keep her calm. Sam did as she was told and closed her eyes, blocking everything out.

With every steady breath she took, her heart slowed down a bit and her face softened.

All she could hear was the radio playing in the background. It was the soft melody at the start of Maroon 5's 'She will be loved'.

Sam opened her eyes and frowned apologetically at Danny.

"Sorry," she apologised and sat back down next to him, "I'm just really worried"

"I know Sam"

"I'm just so scared that something's gonna happen and… I don't wanna lose him. I guess I've never really thought about it before but I really do care about Martin. It seems just when everything's going right in my life, something bad always recks it," Sam said sadly.

_Beauty queen of only 18_

_She had some trouble with herself_

_He was always there to help her_

_She always belonged to someone else_

"Martin was always there for me, always putting me first. But with Jack, he always had other priorities. He never treated me the way Martin does"

_I drove for miles and miles and wound up at your door,_

_I've had you so many times but somehow I want more_

"I remember the first time I invited Martin over. At first I was wondering what the hell I was doing, but once I stopped worrying and started realising how I felt, I couldn't stop, I didn't want to stop. I felt a whole new sensation with Martin, something I'd never felt before, and not just physically, but emotionally"

_I don't mind spending everyday_

_Out on your corner in the pouring rain_

_Look for the girl with the broken smile_

_Ask her if she wants to stay a while_

"I never had to worry about how Martin felt. He made it clear that whatever I wanted, he would do. If I wanted to go slow we'd go slow, if I wanted fast we'd go fast. He was always putting my happiness first, always putting me before himself, always… being Martin"

_And she will be loved_

_And she will be loved_

"I guess he really loves you," Danny said.

Sam half smiled and replied, "Yeah, I guess"

_Tap on my window knock on my door_

_I want to make you feel beautiful_

_I know I tend to get so insecure_

_Doesn't matter anymore_

"Question is, do you love Martin?"

"What?" Sam asked Danny.

"Do you love Martin?" He repeated with a serious face.

_It's not always rainbows and butterflies_

_It's compromise that moves us along_

_My heart is full and my doors always open_

_You can come anytime you want_

"I- I don't know"

"Well what's stopping you? He obviously loves you. And you definately feel something for him, I see the way you look at him, isn't it love?" Danny asked curiously.

_I don't mind spending everyday_

_Out on your corner in the pouring rain_

_Look for the girl with the broken smile_

_Ask her if she wants to stay a while_

"Danny we only just started going out, we're still getting to know each other, I can't be in love," Sam explained nervously.

"Why?"

"Because I just can't"

_And she will be loved_

_And she will be loved_

_And she will be loved_

_And she will be loved_

"Is it because it's Martin?"

"No. No it's got nothing to do with that," Sam said turning her attention to the floor.

"Then is it that it's not Jack?" Danny asked quietly.

"Jack has nothing to do with this. And Martin… he's great. He sees mein away no one else does. He knows all my flaws and mistakes and yet he still loves me for being me," Sam said looking back at Danny with a small smile.

_I know where you hide_

_Alone in your car_

_Know all of the things that make you who you are_

_I know that goodbye means nothing at all_

_Comes back and begs me to catch her everytime she falls_

"He said he loved you?" Danny asked in surprise.

"No. But he said he wouldn't change anything about me, and I can tell how he feels everytime he looks at me, and I think he can tell how I feel," Sam said with a frown.

"And that's a problem?"

"Danny, the only man I ever said 'I love you' to and meant it, used and dumped me, even though he said he loved me too"

"Jack?"

"Yeah"

"So you're afraid of getting your heart broken again?"

"That's one of the reasons. If you don't give your heart away then it can't be broken"

"But Martin would never do that to you"

"Sure, not subconsciously, but it happens. Just being here, I know it's not Martin's fault but... it hurts.Besides, I have this awful feeling in my gut that I'm gonna break his heart"

_Tap on my window_

_Knock on my door _

_I wanna make you feel beautiful_

_I don't mind spending everyday_

_Out on your corner in the pouring rain_

_Look for the girl with the broken smile_

_Ask her if she wants to stay a while _

_And she will be loved_

_She will be loved_

Sam wiped her eyes and looked at her watch. It'd been hours of waiting.

_Please don't try so hard to say goodbye_

"It doesn't matter anyway, I mean he might not even make it," Sam said harshly.

"Sam don't talk like that"

Ayoung looking Doctor emerged from the emergency room with bloody gloves and apron.

"Are you hear for Martin Fitzgerald?" He asked non-chalantly.

"Yes, yes," Sam answered standing up to talk, "How is he?"

The doctor cleared his throat…

_Please don't try so hard to say goodbye_

* * *

A/N: Hey I think the next chapter might be the last for this story, I know what you're thinking, there is obviously some unresolved things going on, but I figured sonce they aren't trapped in the building anymore... so I was thinking of doing a sequel. It will have more drama, Jack/Sam/Martin, suspense andmystery. But I'll only write it iof people will read it, so review and tell me what you think I should do. Thanks 


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